USDOT unveils NEPA procedural reforms

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Monday released three sets of revisions to the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementing procedures. 

The revisions, which cut USDOT’s NEPA procedures in half, will slash red tape, accelerate major infrastructure projects, minimize delays and curb soaring compliance costs, USDOT officials said in a press release. USDOT has not initiated department-wide NEPA reform in 40 years, they added.

The changes combine six separate sets of procedures into one unified USDOT order, providing a "one stop shop" for USDOT NEPA reviews for most of USDOT’s operating administrations (OAs), USDOT officials said.

Two other sets of revisions include the NEPA procedures for Federal Aviation Administration, and the procedures used by the Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Transit Administration and Federal Highway Administration.

Across USDOT, OAs will enforce hard deadlines, simplify categorical exclusions and hone NEPA’s focus. Key changes by USDOT and the other agencies include enforceable deadlines and page limits for environmental studies, clarifying that NEPA only kicks in when agencies truly control a project’s environmental footprint, and streamlined “categorical exclusions” that exempt routine, low-impact actions from lengthy analysis.

The measures will fast-track roads, bridges, broadband and energy installations, USDOT officials said.